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The MQ-9 drone (codename: Reaper) is a highly lethal new crewless combat aircraft capable of performing intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions. In March 2007, the US Air Force formed the Reaper UAV Attack Squadron, the 42nd Air Attack Aircraft Squadron at Crich Air Force Base, Nevada, and set up a particular Reaper UAV Working Group. Research tactics, train crews, and conduct practice drills.
According to several media reports, the threat intelligence company Recorded Future recently discovered that a group of hackers is selling sensitive military documents in the dark market trading market, including the maintenance manual and pilot list of the MQ-9 Reaper drone.
It is also worth mentioning that the military documents being sold are not limited to the information related to the MQ-9 Reaper drone. Other materials include the description of improvised explosive devices. Various training manuals for the bombs, M1 Abrams tank operation manual, crew training and survival manual, and documentation detailing tank tactics.
The US-based Recorded Future said that for these online sales files, hackers are relatively inexpensive, ranging from $150 to $200.
Image: recordedfuture
Recorded Future also said it had contacted hackers online. According to hackers, they obtained these files by exploiting vulnerabilities that publicly disclosed in the Netgear router in 2016.
Hackers use the Shodan search engine to discover those vulnerable Netgear routers online and then exploit them to exploit them. Hackers say these routers are still using known default FTP passwords, which makes it easy to log in, and some of them are in military facilities.
Based on some information posted by hackers on the Internet and conversations with them, Recorded Future was finally able to determine that the attacked military Netgear router located at Crich Air Force Base, Nevada. After obtaining some necessary access rights through the router, he successfully got the maintenance manual and pilot list of the MQ-9 Reaper drone.
The MQ-9 Reaper is considered one of the most advanced drones in the world and is widely used by the US Air Force, Navy, Central Intelligence Agency, Customs and Border Protection, NASA, and other countries. use.
For other military documents, the hackers did not disclose where they specifically stole, but Recorded Future, based on some information they posted, believed that the source of the materials was likely to be the Pentagon or some US Army officials.
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